RELATED: How Michael’s ‘Vick-tory’ dogs have changed lives since their rescue
Watch CBS 6 reporter Joe St. George's special report from last April that features Gracie and how some of Vick's other dogs changed the lives of the families who adopted them.
MIDLOTHIAN, Va. -- One of the pit bulls rescued from NFL star Michael Vick's home in 2007 and featured in a CBS 6 News profile last year has died.
The Gracie's Guardians Facebook page posted the sad news Monday morning.
"This morning, little, old, bow-legged Gracie passed away and got her angel wings. Any words we write here could never begin to express the profound, positive and lasting impact that this little, black pit bull had on so many people who encountered her or heard the story of her suffering and triumph," stated a post on the group's Facebook page. "We are and will be forever grateful for this little, broken black dog and everything she personified."
Gracie was one of the more than 50 dogs rescued from Vick's Surry County home in 2007 after he and some of his friends were arrested for their roles in a dog fighting ring called Bad Newz Kennels.
While some of the dogs rescued from the property had to be put down, others like Gracie were saved and rehabilitated.
The canine survivors were nicknamed "Vick-tory dogs." Before Vick's arrest dogs involved in dog fighting were almost always euthanized, but that is no longer the case.
Gracie lived out her final days in a loving home in Midlothian.
"Today, we are also so thankful for Gracie's mother, Sharon Cornett, whose heart knows no boundaries, who gave Gracie the love to flourish and who lost her best friend today. Fly free little angel. We'll keep working in your spirit to help other dogs in need," Gracie's Guardians posted on Facebook.
Gracie's Guardians is Richmond Animal League's pit bull focused initiative. The group selected her as their "namesake in tribute to her perseverance and that of countless other pit bulls who have suffered or continue to suffer at the hands of people, yet whose spirits and love for humans remains untarnished."
RELATED: How Michael’s ‘Vick-tory’ dogs have changed lives since their rescue
Watch CBS 6 reporter Joe St. George's special report from last April that features Gracie and how some of Vick's other dogs changed the lives of the families who adopted them.
